Tasting Notes
Vinous 91
The 2009 Les Pagodes de Cos takes a few swirls of the glass to unfurl, perhaps never quite clicking into fifth gear. Tobacco-stained black fruit, briary and woodland scents eventually emerge; with decanting I suspect this would transmute into an attractive bouquet. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin, quite symmetrical and extremely well balanced. It is not the most powerful or complex northern Médoc and yet there is surfeit elegant and poise. Enjoy this now and over the next decade. Perversely, I prefer this to the Grand Vin! Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.
Anticipated maturity: 2022-2035
Robert Parker 87
Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. The Pagodes ’09 has a more exotic nose compared to its peers: mulberry and dark plum to the fore, candied orange peel following later. The palate is medium-bodied with chewy tannins. It is a little “clunky†compared to its peers with a very austere, rigid finish that is missing nascent charm. Perhaps it will improve in the bottle? We shall see. Tasted January 2013.